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Editor’s take: India - Bangladesh

Another smashing semi-final comes to an end, setting the way for what could only be one of the biggest finals the Champions Trophy has ever seen yet. If the ICC were worried about not enough ticket takers for the previous match, they can now rest in peace. Tickets will be sold for this one faster than one can say ‘Champions Trophy’.

So, the match. India - Bangladesh. It was a comprehensive win for India. There is no doubt about that. The quintessential chase led to the men in blue winning by nine wickets with almost ten overs to spare. You’d think the margin would get smaller as the tournament progresses.

When India walked in to bat, they had a decent total of 265. The good thing was that the openers were not complacent. They shouldn’t be either. Bangladesh made it to the semis and not by luck. India should be wary, no matter who the opponent is. It has been established that rankings and the past have nothing to do with the victory. The team that plays better that day wins. In Bangladesh’s defense, I would not say that this was a low scoring match.

The Indian openers clicked. Rohit Sharma’s fantastic century, his partnership with Dhawan and then with Kohli ensured a smooth ride to the finals. It was a clinical display with the opening partnership becoming the second best partnership ever in the CT. The shots that were fired were truly world-class. Bangladesh tried various bowling options, sending anyone who could bowl, to attack. The Indians outclassed them.

The men in green held their own as well. Being sent to bat first by India, they scored 264. The run rate was pretty good and had they batted just a little better, the scoreboard could have crossed 300.Despite it being such a flat wicket, the Indian Bowlers did really well in restricting the runs to less than 270. Full credit to them.

Blue was the colour of the day. And a date is set with the Other Greens on Sunday. Despite India playing a clean collective performance, with batting, bowling, and fielding hitting the mark, they know that they should not take it easy. They have a good match coming up. The team that India met and defeated by 124 runs on June 4th, 2017 is not the same team that they will greet on June 18th.

India takes on arch-rivals Pakistan at the Oval, in London in the final of an ICC tournament. The Oval. It will be a thrilling clash. It is an all-important finale. You have two days to recuperate and get ready. With your fantasy lineup. Both teams are not likely to change their winning combination. Would you?Indu

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The table is currently in a very surprising
situation. Most expected Sri Lanka to show Bangladesh the door. But here they
are still standing up and shining. The tournament is wide open. Today’s match
is between India and Sri Lanka. The stakes are much higher now that Bangladesh
is more feared than before. The teams would not want to risk anything at this
point. Earlier I had said that they might experiment with the lineup and give
everyone a chance. Now it will be more than giving people a chance. They will
strategize. The Indian team will be open to experimentation, but not at the
cost of results.

The untested ones are Deepak Hooda, KL Rahul, and Axar Patel. India has lost to Sri Lanka in
their first encounter of this tournament. They will want to be wary because
another defeat could cost them the tournament itself. So, not all the new
players will see the light today. A lot depends on Rohit Sharma today. Shikhar
Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey and Dinesh Karthik will chip in too.…

The tournament is halfway
through. There have been some brilliant performances and some worth forgetting.
The T20 fever has gripped the country with intensity. Come evening, and cricket
fans sit in front of the television, with the phone in their hands. This is to
follow not just the men on the fields but also their very own fantasy team that
they have created on the Fantain App.
Let’s have a look at how the eight teams have played so far.
Going in the order of points on the table NO TEAMS P W L T NR PTS NRR 1 KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS 8 6